4 ODD FAMILIES 



Ordee Macrochires 



FAMILIES EXAMPLES 



Goatsuckers Cap-ri-mul'gi-dae .... Nighthawk, Whippoorwill. 



Swifts Mi-cro-pod'i-dae Chimney Swift. 



Hummingbirds Tro-chil'i-dae Ruby-Throated Hummingbird. 



THE GOATSUCKER FAMILY 



Caprimulgidae 



The Nighthawk^ is far from being a true hawk. It be- 

 longs to a Family of birds which have soft, owl-like plumage, 

 and enormous mouths, fringed above with a row of stiff bris- 

 tles, for use in capturing insects on the wing. Many years 

 ago, when people believed many things that were not true, 

 some believed that these big-mouthed birds sucked goats; 

 hence the absurd name applied to the Family. 



Whenever, during the hour just before sunset, you see a 

 good-sized bird with dark plumage, long, sharp-pointed wings, 

 and a big white spot on the under surface of each wing, — 

 wheeling, soaring, dropping and circling through the air, — 

 you may know that it is a Nighthawk, catching insects. Its 

 flight is graceful and free, and when on the aerial war-path it 

 is a very industrious bird. Some people compare this bird 

 on the wing with bats; but I see no resemblance save the bare 

 fact of semi-nocturnal flight. This bird, and the other mem- 

 bers of its Family, are among the very few North American 

 birds that capture winged insects high in mid-air, and for this 

 reason, even if there were no other, all the Goatsuckers 

 should be most rigidly protected everywhere. The time for 

 shooting the Nighthawk for "sport" (!) has long gone by, 

 never to return. 



^ Chor-dei'les virginianus. Length, about 9.50 inches. 



